Hi, I've been reading through the posts on this and other forums for a while now trying to find answers to a few questions but just keep finding more questions so I thought I'll just join and ask what I want.
I have a Nad C350 going to Kef iQ5's at the moment but I want to use the Nad in another room and upgrade a bit through the Kef's so what I have been looking at is (second-hand by the way I can't afford new) Nad C370, Cyrus 3 or 5, and Archam A80-A85-A90. I was looking at some others like Musical Fidelity A3 but it has no headphone socket which is no good. Reading about the Cyrus I find confusing it seems everyone says you must use the PSX-R power supply, does this mean it's poor without it as it doubles the cost, if it is poor without it why don't Cyrus put a proper power supply in it in the first place, or is this really just clever marketing to make it feel cheaper than it really is? Also on the Cyrus it seems a lot of second-hand ones don't have the banana plugs that you have to have for the speakers, as long as their 4mm it doesn't create a problem but I read somewhere that some are 3mm which seem difficult to find. Reviews on the Nad C370 are usually favourable as long as your looking at budget amps, is Cyrus a major upgrade from the Nad is there an obvious difference? The Archam A90 RRP is twice the Nad and Cyrus without the PSX-R, is it just a matter of you get what you pay for and as long as you can afford it the Archam will sound far superior to the others. I like the style of the Cyrus but if it's no good on it's own? I also find it strange that several user reviews I've read about the Nad C370 is that it's better than the later C372, why on earth would Nad make a follow on model that's inferior to the one it's replacing?
The PSX-R is an extra which can be added later. It brings about many benefits to any unit to which it is attached. This doesn't make the standard unit poor. It makes the standard unit upgradeable.
The only units which cannot be improved through applying the PSX-R are the Mono X Monoblocks which have a larger power supply than the one in the PSX-R...
Power supplies are important. They pretty much define the capabilities of a unit.